Upon a Darkened River
<'Decepticon'> Airlift says, "Bludgeon, if you are available, I would like to resume our discussions where we left off..perhaps in the training room. I have given consideration to your words, and would learn more of your methods, to see if they might be applied to my own skills.." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Simulator - Darkmount(#11997Rnt) - Polyhex ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ As awe-inspiring as the walls and tower of Darkmount are, and how well they instill the sense of Decepticon militarism and industry, they are far from the only signs, if the most obvious. Within the tower on the 99th floor is one room that can be anywhere and anyone it wants to be. Cavernously large and covered walls, ceiling, and floor in reflective metal tiles, the simulator is an ideal training ground for weapons, recruits, or veterans looking to hone their skills. Players: Blast Off Outrider Objects: Training Drone Obvious exits: Out leads to Atrium - Darkmount. <'Decepticon'> Bludgeon says, "I would be more than happy to assist." Bludgeon arrives from the Atrium - Darkmount. Bludgeon has arrived. Vendetta has arrived. Blast Off stands in the Darkmount training room. The Combaticon sniper, as always a stickler for shooting excellence and accuracy, has heard of Outrider's less than stellar performance during an earlier training room simulation. BUT. She did not train with HIM. And that was *obviously* the entire problem. Given that she is a medic, and he may require her assistance during battles in the future (as he did not long ago).... he basically just wants to make sure she isn't going to KILL him by accident when she's supposed to be *healing* him. So he has sent a message to her to meet him here now for further (read- BETTER) training- from an expert marksmech. Outrider marches in like a good little soldier with a brand new gun (because she forgot hers at Rhetoris). "Reporting for duty Mr. Blast Off sir!" she announces before snapping to attention. Her gun is held upside-down in one hand as she salutes with the other. The doors open, and the form of Airlift is momentarily outlined in the difference of lighting between the two rooms, before he enters and walks comfortably in. He checks his system readouts before initializing the simulation program into his own operating systems, looking up towards Blast Off and nodding politely. "Blast Off..practicing or training?" he asks curiously, not knowing that the Combaticon is courting his newest recruit under guise of tutelage. He draws his scythe and checks the systems, before taking a waiting position a short ways into the training room. He himself has arranged a...trainer...for the trip. When Outrider enters and declares that she's reporting a duty, Airlift turns to Blast Off with a knowing sort of smirk and raises a brow in an amused fashion. Vendetta is off to the side infront of a training dummy sword out but not moving...He is totally immobile like a statue as if trying to make the dummy combust with his gaze... Bludgeon enters the Simulator room shortly after Airlift. Sans pretender shell, the cyber-samurai takes a moment to look throughout the chamber, always interested in seeing who's training and how it's going. He spots Outrider, who nearly knocked herself out with her own rifle, he muses. Then Blast Off, who is perhaps his only equal with long range precision. Then finally Airlift, who he is here to meet. "Well met, Airlift." He says politely, placing his right fist into his left palm, inclining his head. "I have been giving some thought to your request and have been looking forward to the chance to see exactly how I may be of assistance to you." Blast Off takes one look at Outrider and stifles a groan and a facepalm. He just quietly points to the gun. "Upside down. Turn that- and remember that the barrel points AWAY from ME." Airlift arrives and the Combaticon glances over to him. "I am training Outrider. I heard she requires further... assistance." Then Airlift gives him that look and he just blinks back at the other Con. What... what was THAT about? A wing elevon twitches, then he turns back to Outrider. Then Bludgeon arrives. The Combaticon glances over at him, too, but as he seems busy with Airlift, so Blast off just goes back to business- with Outrider. "Have you much experience with weapons?" He asks her. There's a smile and a nod from Airlift in response, the Reaver's targetting visor retracted for the moment. His optics glow a cool, steady red in hue (his player has been reversing optic colors for a while now accidentally!), something those who know him well would recognize as an outward sign of a balanced psyche. "I thank you for your assistance Bludgeon.." he says simply as way of greeting. He then motions in farther to the training room as he considers how to explain his situation best, not bothering to keep his voice low so easily overheard by anyone who might care to listen. "While I was able to defeat you when last we sparred, your words have given me a chance to consider what may be lacking in my combat abilities. It is true that this form, unlike my seeker body before, is possessed of considerable strength and firepower both. Indeed, as you have seen, with my weaponsmithing abilities to bring into play I carry far greater firepower than most who came from as humble of beginnings as I did. However, I feel that you were correct in your assessment that I lack control.." he's not someone usually accustomed to admitting any form of failure. He spreads four hands out, "I am uncertain that your style of fighting would be fitting, considering our rather different forms. However, I am certain that there is much to learn from you, and which might help me to find my own path should you be willing to teach.." he pulls a set of four pistols from subspace, one in each hand, "I would note however that I am unlikely to abandon my ranged weaponry in favor of pure melee..it is simply not in my nature to tie myself fully to one style of engagement.." Outrider turns the weapon around. "Uh, no Mr. Blast Off sir. I'm a medic, I'm not really a soldier, I mean, yeah they gave us weapons and all that but there wasn't enough time to worry about teaching us to shoot when it was much more important to learn how to do repairs, and it's not like any of us were actually gonna live long enough to worry about shooting that well, just look at Misfire, right? I mean even Lord Galvatron (praise-be-to-his-name!!) lets Misfire live and he's pretty much the worst shot ever am I right? So I guess--" She stops and takes a HUGE breath, "--even though I carry a weapon and have some built in I'm not all that experienced with them." She's just a little excited to be here. In the blink of a shutter, Vendetta lunges at the training dummy and stabs under the arm where the shoulder actuator should be. The seeker smiles to himself as he works on applying the visualisation concepts Bludgeon taught him the other day. He finally turns and salutes the new arrivals. Bludgeon listens as Airlift speaks, describing his desire as well as his opinions. As he finishes, Bludgeon simply extends his left arm -- the tank's backwards facing cannon flips forward, extending past his forearm and hand, and fires three shots without turning his head to look. Three blasts of electrical energy erupt, racing through the air, and all three strike bullseye's on three separate targets in the distance. "I was a sniper, long before I was a warrior." He says simply. "I have never forgotten nor lost my skill in guns and cannons, and few people to do this day," He glances towards Blast Off and inclines his head politely, then back to Airlift, "can match my precision and accuracy. I would never change your mind in your choice of weaponry. What we wield is part of who we are." The cannon flips backwards again, the barrel smoking slightly. The targets smoking even more. Blast Off just sort of stares at Outrider as she goes on and on and on.... There's a the faintest twinge in his optics at the mention of Misfire. Who, despite the odds, somehow became the closest thing Blast off probably had to a friend... but he's been away on some assignment or another for a long time now. The Combaticon waves a hand, "Yes, yes... very well. Still- you don't want to be the person shooting their own forces. How would you feel offlining the very mech you were sent out there to repair? No, you must learn ...acceptible shooting skills so that you can both contribute if need be AND defend yourself (for the Autofools WILL target you simply because you are a medic)." He stops and glances over at Vendetta, who suddenly lunges nearby. He nods a greeting, then stops to look at Airlift and Bludgeon. Airlift sure seems to think highly of the Pretender. He's heard good things about him, but Blast off isn't easily impressed by *anyone* and isn't expecting to be now. Though he notices Bludgeon's polite nod and returns it. Well... at least he appears to have MANNERS. Unlike MOST Decepticons. Interesting... a fellow sniper, hmmm? His gaze lingers one moment longer, then turns back to the femme. "Now... I want you to head over there..." he points to a shooting bench. "Sit and ready yourself to fire your weapon- but do not do so... yet. Make sure your sights... if you have any... are on tightly and secure." "Yessir!" Outrider replies cheerfully, skipping over to the shooting bench. She looks at her weapon, and then, raises her hand, looking expectantly at Blast Off, waving it back and forth, because she wants to ask a question. This is CLEARLY school time, so she's behaving like a good student. Airlift isn't the sort to gawk in amazement at such a feat, it's simply not his nature. Not after what he's seen. That's not to say the shot isn't impressive, simply that he's not the sort to exclaim how impressive it is. He simply nods instead, "Indeed, and that sort of control and precision is what I need to work on..both with my claws, scythe and weapons systems.." he agrees as he considers Bludgeon's words. "I am hoping that, without meaning offense to you, I can discuss the matter with a few others and snythesize my own style of fighting from the myriad of styles I have observed and will continue to observe.." Did his glance flicker, ever so briefly, towards Blast Off when he said that? Well, he's been fairly friendly to the Combaticon of late. "So..how to begin then?" he asks curiously, not having exactly been 'trained' in such skills before. Indeed, his combat abilities are still based upon the most basic of seeker combat packages, with the remnants of the Styx code floating around inside his systems, the source of his more impressive maneuvers.. Bludgeon simply shakes his head. "We all have to find our own way and our own path." He says rather simply. He folds his hands behind his back, looking at Airlift carefully. "If you're going to seek the opinions of others, then there's no reason to waste my time going over any techniques that they might be able to show you. We'll skip to something more complicated then. You will find if you have ability in it very quickly, for not many do." The samurai pauses, thinking for a moment. "Every Cybertronian has an energy signature. Every spark has its own wavelength that it sheds onto the universe. If you can learn to sense the sparks of your opponents, then you can see their movements before they make them. If you can see into the wavelength of our signatures, then you can predict actions before your enemies often know they're going to make them. That's one of the techniques I apply in battle. I strike where someone /will/ be, not where they are." He pauses again. "It is a technique of Circuit-Su. Most Unicronians were created to be hunters and trackers, from what I've been told. Perhaps some aspect of that may allow you to more easily learn to refocus that function, in a matter of sorts, and apply it to Circuit-Su." Blast Off blinks at Outrider again. He glances over at the others, wondering if they've had to deal with this, too... then walks over to the femme. "...Yes?", he asks with his customary aloof tone. As he waits his gaze scans the room and spots Airlift looking at him. He stops and considers what that meant... Hmm, well, if Airlift seeks to learn from *Blast Off*, then that just shows the medic has intelligence.... His gaze returns to Outrider. Airlift considers this for several moments, his silence that of a student considering the teachings of one he has chosen to put value in. His gaze follows Bludgeon's movings, and finally when the samurai trails off he asks, "I have heard of Circuit-Su of course, but I know little of it's actual teachings. Of course, with my ties to Unicron, I am aware of the Matrix and the suggestion that it in some way interacts with the sparks of all of our kind..but little beyond that. Save that Unicron feared that power above all other.." He pauses, "How would one tap into such a power in the first place?" "What's a 'sight' and how do I find it on my weapon?" Outrider asks Blast Off. Bludgeon, hands still behind his back, pauses for a moment and then extends one hand, showing a small object to Airlift. It looks like a headband of some sort. "I brought this, just in case. It had crossed my mind. It is a complete sensory inhibitor. It will shut down all your senses and plunge you into a complete and utter void. No sound, no touch, no sight, no anything. You can remove it at any time of course, with some clumsy fumbling generally, but it will allow you to see if you have /any/ potential for Circuit-Su whatsoever." Bludgeon flips the item idly. "By shutting down all senses, it will allow you to attempt to tap into an additional one. It will still take some time, however, but finding your potential would be the first step. If you can't, then I'm afraid you'll have to resort to more mundane improvements. But if you sense the presence of other sparks, then you can learn to understand what the wavelengths mean and how to interpret them." "An interesting proposition.." he says as he considers the object for a long several moments, before reaching out and taking it from Bludgeon's hand. He walks back a few steps, considering the implications of putting such an inhibitor on. The helplessness that would be involved..the reliance upon trust that he is in no danger. He looks around the training room a moment, and then places an extraordinary amount of faith in Blast Off and Bludgeon indeed as he simply nods to Bludgeon and raises the strange headband, putting it on..... Bludgeon immediately steps forward and spins Airlift around, several times. Of course, Airlift can't feel himself being spun around. He can't see, he can't feel, even the pull of gravity is gone. Bludgeon has to stop him from turning because there isn't even a sense of balance. Then he steps back again, and communicates directly to the headband. It resonates within Airlift's head gently. < mode. Combat: Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior strikes Airlift with his Tough Love attack! -2 Blast Off glares back, completely unsympathetic. "Are you going to lose your wits and hide just because there is fighting going on nearby? You shall die on the battlefield in short order, then. If you wish to live, you shall find some struts, get back on that bench, and resume your shooting practice. I shall deal with Airlift if he interferes with us. But remember... this is a training room. ...No permenant damage anyway. Pull yourself together, that's an order!" There's much to be said for tough love, and though on the surface no effect is shown of the accomplishment, the core within that Unicronian body knows it's true name. It's true being. The call is like a mantra, summoning forth Airlift from the darkness..but it must reach him first. Little by little though, as Airlift struggles against Styx in that abyss of nothing, there is the faintest lightening. There are shapes in that darkness, objects..things that can be touched and seen and felt. What they are is still obscured, but he is aware of them. Aware of presence.. Styx charges in and slices a blow into Airlift, the two impacting their weapons against one another and sending both weapons spinning into the darkness, and then they fight with claw and wing and foot, tearing and slashing and kicking at one another with a fury unseen. To the form materializing before him though, Styx seems wholly unimpressed. "You think that a little added armor will be enough to allow you to defeat me? You have already lost to this form when a weak willed medic wielded it, how do you think you could possibly stand against the Deathbringer?" he demands. Indeed, despite the fact that Bludgeon has landed a few blows, Airlift's body shows almost no sign of damage whatsoever. The Reaver launches into the air towards the now larger form's head, snapping a hard kick as his body twists in the air, trying to send Bludgeon's shell-enshrouded form reeling. Combat: Airlift strikes Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior with his flying roundhouse kick (Kick) attack! Bludgeon stands his ground as Styx tries to deliver a hard kick but the samurai shifts his weight. The kick strikes him, but it nearly throws Styx back, the force of the blow repelled, nearly sending the Unicronian backwards on his aft. It was like striking a solid wall, completely different from striking Bludgeon a few moments ago. "He is not weak, and he is no mere medic. His name is Airlift." Bludgeon extends both of his hands outstretched. In one hand, electricity crackles into existence, churning like a ball of lightning. In the other, waves of heat warp and distort the air, igniting into flames. The samurai lowers both of his arms, one bound in lightning and the other bound in flames. "Say it." He intones, reverberating. "Say his name!" Bludgeon thrusts one hand forward, releasing a shockwave of electricity that bathes the area in front of him. "Airlift!" He shouts again, thrusting his other hand forward, unleashing a wave of fire that envelops everything before him. "SAY IT!" He shouts, forcing the words into Styx's head, forcing him to divide his attention and focus. "SAY HIS NAME!" Bludgeon brings both arms forward, simultaneously releasing both fire and lightning and bringing them both clashing against one another in a violent display, releasing both power and energy from his own energon signature. Combat: Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior strikes Airlift with his Fire And Lightning attack! -1 Combat: Secondary Damage! Ratbat has arrived. The fire and electricity burn and dance along the Reaver's form, the electricity especially damaging, arcing it's way into servo's and mobility systems and overloading quite a few, the Reaver's movements suddenly more sluggish, lacking the crisp snap of power they had had before. "Nnnghhhh! You think that such..meager..attacks are enough to make a difference against me!?" demands Styx, "the only name that matters, and shall ever matter, is STYX!" And then he manages to break away from Bludgeon. Scythe is in hand once again, but he's wielding it wrong, attempting to fight with the blade as he would his energy saber.. Because inside, the division of attention is starting to have more of an impact. Indeed, at the same time those servos are blowing out in the training room, a great rent appears in the darkness, shedding more light into the darkness within. The shape of the tear in that darkness is irregular, almost like a shattered pane of glass, and the darkness around it has a green tinged quality..the darkness outside that tear though is different entirely than the black nothing within. Airlift swipes and slashes at the form of Styx in that darkness, "I have advanced beyond what you were..beyond what you could have been!" the loyal Decepticon calls out as he pulls his plasma pistols from nowhere, opening fire on Styx with considerable effect. Combat: Airlift sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Airlift strikes Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior with his miswielded scythe attack! Combat: Critical Hit! Combat: Airlift sets his defense level to Fearless. Blast Off remains trying to get Outrider to come from under that shooting bench. He WAS attempting shooting lessons for the femme when Airlift decided to get in touch with his inner child- er, demon. Bludgeon easily deflects the scythe, preventing it from striking any vital points, using the armor in his forearms to absorb the blow. It pierces the armor, disrupting the flow of power in his arm, but better than if it would have struck him clean in the chest. "You're already getting weaker." He intones deeply. "This isn't your body. It doesn't listen to you. It isn't your slave any longer." Fire and lightning still wreathed around Bludgeon's gauntlets, he lunges forward, aiming at several pressure points again, seeking to further disrupt the flow within Styx. His hands move into a blur of motion, fire and lightning dancing in the wake of his strikes, each one seeking to send shockwaves not only through the Unicronian's body, but through to his very spark itself. Sometimes the best training is when failure is worse than death. Combat: Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior strikes Airlift with his Concussive Strikes attack! -1 *thoom* *wham* *thud* Airlift's form is hit in rapid succession, striking and striking into him as Bludgeon assaults the body of Styx. Meanwhile, within the darkness, each of those concussions echoes through the space like a peal of thunder, drawing more light to that shadowy world within. And now sound..because even once those echoes fade, there is still something audible. A noise that is different than had been the silence before. A low thrumm of some vast machine, inactive but still retaining some power deep within. "No! It is mine, and I will not release it! It is I who was to wield this form! I who was created by Unicron!!" rants the practically frothing Styx, dancing back farther out of reach of Bludgeon, his arm raised and plasma cannon pointing towards the Pretender. Only it is only the plasma cannon, the massive fusion cannon Airlift had created does not materialize as it did when last Bludgeon faced Airlift. Within that darkness though, I recognize this place.." Airlift says, calm and immobile, looking across at the shadowy evil that lurks ever in his depths. "This place holds no more power over me than you do now Styx. It is a memory..nothing more.." he says as he raises his arm. Only in place of the plasma cannon he usually mounts, the massive form of the fusion cannon materializes, Airlift's own creation based upon that of Galvatron. And then he fires, and in the blast that hurtles the form of Styx through the already shattered eye, the interior of Unicron's floating head is visible. In the training room, Styx is prepared to fire, but staggers instead, looking bewildered and confused. Blast Off gives up on Outrider with an annoyed huff. And she is going to be hearing of this later, she can be certain! He gazes down with a flash of violet optics, then straightens and turns his attention to the battle waging nearby. He nods politely to Bludgeon, and radios him, <> He does bring out his ionic blaster now, just in case, then resumes watching. Bludgeon eyes the massive cannon, knowing its strength already. Its devastation. When Styx hesitates, Bludgeon doesn't. He never does. There's a flash of light and a blur of motion and suddenly the samurai is behind Styx, monomolecular katana held outstretched. There's a snap and a crack of shattered steel as the cannon suddenly slides away, the barrel severed from the rest of the cannon, clattering to the floor with a thunderous thump. A moment later, the force of the blow strikes Styx, a shockwave of raw power that cascades over his body, the delayed reaction an entirely different sword technique. Again, Bludgeon's voice intones. "No. It is not your body, nor your choice to release it. It is already released. It is already out of your hands. This is nothing but a game, Unicronian. And once Airlift realizes that it's over, then you will fall back into the abyss where you came from. You will be nothing but a memory, faded and distant, and no one will even remember your name." He turns, facing the Reaver. "I've already forgotten it." He says, his voice as cold as ice. He ignores anything over his radio. He's too busy to even divert his attention away for a single moment. The form of the Reaver is still and silent, not even wavering from the force of the blow that severs the barrel from the plasma cannon. Silent, immobile, allowing Bludgeon the time to speak as the war within grinds towards the inevitable. For Airlift now knows where he is, and what the darkness was. Within the floating, disembodied head of Unicron he was once reforged into the creature he now battles, the form that now walks amongst the Decepticons. And the power came with a price of betrayal and darkness. Airlift's freedom from that darkness was purchased at a high cost, in the final assault upon the reborn Unicron, when Rodimus Prime and Galvatron together assaulted the chaos bringer. It was from that battle that Airlift was taken by Galvatron, and restored. "No longer a Seeker..but no longer the chaos bringer's puppet, nor yours to control.. You are nothing but the phantom of my darkest hour.." he says as he emerges from the shattered eye of Unicron. "And you can never be more than the smallest part of me.." and rather than fire upon the damaged form, he floats to it..and then two forms become one again, and the two wavelengths in the darkness are one. Synchronized like the melody and counterpoint that form a symphony of dark beauty. And his optics glow slowly back to a dark red hue, "Never forgotten.." he disagrees rather calmly, though the inhibitor is still upon him, "What is part of us will always be a part of us..I see that now. But the past does not define me, nor does the being of Styx exist beyond memory.. And never shall again, for he is the smallest part of who I am." Then, unerringly, Airlif turns to look at Bludgeon, "An interesting lesson.." he says wryly. Blast Off maintains watch, but Bludgeon obviously doesn't require assistance, so eventually the Combaticon grows bored and sits down at the shooting bench, kicking at Outrider to give himself footspace if needed. Then he begins sighting in his own weapon... might as well make this a useful trip. Black fingers adjust the knobs on his blaster's sights and he peers into the crosshairs..... Bludgeon would smile, if he had a mouth. Instead, a million pinpoints of light dance around him, his shell disintegrating into laser grid-work, then into nothing at all. Bludgeon places his right fist into his left palm, inclining his head. "Congratulations. I believe you have passed the first lesson. I think we'll be able to move on to the next step now. But for another day." He turns and inclines his head politely to Blast Off and Outrider as well, then turns and slowly walks away. An interesting lesson indeed, he muses silently. Thoughts already running through his head as to how to tap into that darker power within Airlift again.. Skull-Faced Samurai Warrior transforms into his Robot mode.